Former Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn has denied reports that he is part of a consortium in talks over a possible takeover of the club.

The BBC reported that former Republic of Ireland international was fronting a group who had held talks with club owner Ellis Short about a possible takeover.

However, speaking at the National Aquatic Centre where he was unveiled as the newest ambassador for the Para Swimming Allianz European Championships, Quinn insisted that there was no truth to the story.

"Not true," he replied when asked about the reports. "Sadly someone jumped the gun there a little bit and probably felt I was doing more.

"I was actually in Sunderland a couple of times but it was nothing to do with football and maybe that’s where it came from.

"At the same time I, like everybody else, hopes the situation gets better there very quickly.

"There are one or two people who are meant to be interested in buying the club, I hear all that. I’m the same as the fans but we’ll just see how it plays.

"No, I’ve nothing special to tell you there, I just hope they get out of it.

"I’m gone six years now so I haven’t left anything behind me in terms of my support for the club. I’d like to see it turned around, I just don’t think it’s going to be me."

Quinn also called on the Irish public to get behind the Para Swimming Championships, which takes place at the National Aquatic Centre between 13-19 August.

The former footballer called on the public to volunteer for the event and help to make a truly memorable event.

"I think it’s great first of all that Ireland has the event and secondly, we must put on a great show," he said.

"Knowing the Irish spirit, particularly in sport and we’ve seen that in abundance over the years, I think a lot more people will be feeling the same as I do and want to get involved.

"We can really ramp the volunteer level up for it, I think there’s another few weeks left just to get everybody in.

"We’re privileged to have it as a county and let’s make all the other countries feel like they’ve had a very special occasion."